Thursday, October 1, 2026
With Propel NY Energy clearing a major state regulatory hurdle, Uniondale community advocates are questioning what the $3.26 billion transmission project will ultimately cost ratepayers — and what benefit residents will see from the new infrastructure.
“What is it going to cost us?” Stacey Richardson, president of the Uniondale Empowerment Resource Center, said. “The issue that’s missing is the cost.”
The New York State Public Service Commission has granted Propel NY Energy a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need, advancing the transmission project toward construction planning and execution.
The project, being developed by the New York Power Authority and New York Transco, would involve construction and upgrades of the transmission infrastructure across Long Island and into New York City. The developers filed a joint proposal in April outlining their plans for the project.
For Richardson, however, the PSC’s decision does not resolve questions she has raised since she first encountered representatives of Propel during their outreach in Uniondale.
Pearl Jacobs, a longtime Uniondale community advocate and president of the Nostrand Gardens Civic Association, said she has heard concerns about the project from residents as well. Propel representatives attended a Greater Uniondale Area Action Coalition meeting in August, when residents had the chance to ask questions about the project. Jacobs and Richardson were among those who attended.
Jacobs has continued discussing the project with residents. “The vast majority of people here in Uniondale do not want that,” Jacobs said. “They don’t want it. And I don’t want it.”
Communities along the project’s route, she said, need to communicate with one another as the approval process continues. “If we’re not unified, and we don’t do this in a collective way, they’re going to just push it through,” Jacobs said.
The project could bring construction through heavily traveled areas, adding a local concern for communities such as Uniondale and Hempstead. Opponents have questioned what extended road work could mean for traffic, schools, homes and businesses along the route, and have voiced concerns that toxins in the air, created by the construction, might harm students at Uniondale schools.
"The District is still assessing any potential impact to our students, staff and community," Uniondale school superintendent Monique Darrisaw-Akil said in a statement on Tuesday.
“The issuance of the certificate of environmental compatibility and public need is a significant milestone for Propel NY Energy and reflects the extensive record before the Public Service Commission that has included years of planning, environmental and technical review, and meaningful, inclusive community engagement that incorporates local voices and values,” NY Transco President Joris Veldhoven and NYPA President Justin Driscoll wrote in a joint statement. “This regulatory approval affirms the urgent need for this critical transmission project that will improve energy reliability and resiliency for all New Yorkers.”
Propel’s environmental management and construction plans will be filed with the PSC in four, with the first two filings already completed. Those plans detail construction methods.
North Shore residents have opposed the project since it was first proposed, citing concerns about public health and safety. They have focused on pollution and potential electromagnetic field generation, as well as traffic and environmental impact. Propel’s plans have also raised concerns about the health of Hempstead Harbor and its shellfish populations.
Sea Cliff Village Administrator Bruce Kennedy described the PSC’s decision as “a remarkable display of regulatory tone-deafness.”
“We are thoroughly reviewing the decision and weighing all available options for our next steps,” Kennedy wrote in a statement. “Sea Cliff is not done protecting our residents, our community and our harbor.”
Propel was chosen in 2023 by the New York Independent System Operator to satisfy the Long Island Offshore Wind Export Public Policy Need, or to export wind energy generated off the Long Island coast to the rest of the downstate region. Since then, several offshore wind projects have been canceled, and Propel representatives now say the infrastructure project is needed to address grid reliability and the need for more capacity in the state.
Residents argue that with the cancellation of offshore wind projects and no named power source, Propel will not address the state’s reliability and capacity issues on its own. The Independent System Operator is responsible for determining what kind of power will flow on the underground lines that propel constructs
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must also approve Propel, and all four phases of environmental management and construction plans must be approved before construction can begin.
